Cal Point Guard Justin Pippen Emerges as Two-Way Force

Scottie Pippen retired as an NBA star 17 months before the birth of Justin Pippen, the youngest of his three sons. But Cal’s sophomore point guard has borrowed plenty from his Hall of Fame father’s game, including being a floor general and pushing the pace in transition.

“Also, having those defensive instincts, having good hands, being disruptive on the defensive end,” said Justin, referencing the skillset of his father, a 10-time NBA all-defensive honoree.

Dai Dai Ames, Cal’s other starting guard, says he deserves some credit for Pippen’s emergence as the team’s top defensive player. The two played 1-on-1 all summer after arriving on campus as transfers.

“We were competing very hard. We would sometimes get into each other on the court,” Ames said. “I feel like that helped us both get better.

“He’s a real good defender. He’d have to guard me in the summer and it was kind of tough for him. I feel like I kind of helped him at the defensive end.”

Without a doubt, Pippen (a Michigan transfer from suburban Los Angeles) and Ames (a Virginia transfer from Chicago) have created a productive bond that has helped power the Bears (18-8, 6-7 ACC) to their first winning season since 2017.

Cal will try to further the case for its first NCAA tournament bid in 10 years when it faces rival Stanford (16-10, 5-8) on Saturday at Haas Pavilion. Tipoff is 3 p.m.

The Bears beat the Cardinal 78-66 last month at Maples Pavilion, where Pippen helped spark a comeback before totaling 18 points and six assists. He also held Ebuka Okorie, Stanford’s high-scoring freshman, to 1-for-16 shooting, including 0 for 9 on 3-point tries.

“He took that matchup very personally, very seriously,” teammate John Camden said at the time. “I think he showed he’s one of the best defenders in the ACC.”

Cal coach Mark Madsen takes it a step further. “I think Justin’s one of the top defensive players in the country,” Madsen said. “He almost always leads us in deflections. We’re never afraid on put him on the other team’s best player.”

Cal guard Justin Pippen, right, battles for the ball against Nate Kingz of Syracuse — Dai Dai Ames and Justin Pippen celebrate Cal's victory over Notre Dame | D. Ross Cameron-Imagn Images

Pippen and Ames have formed one of the best backcourt tandems in the ACC. Pippen averages 14.9 points, 4.0 rebounds, 4.4 assists and 1.8 steals while Ames leads the Bears in scoring at 17.1.

“They’re kind of fire and ice,” Stanford coach Kyle Smith said. “With Ames, you’ve got an elite scorer coming at you all the time. And Pippen’s got the good size, he’s got a great feel, he gets everyone involved and then he’s got the ability to draw fouls and score when needed. The run a lot of their stuff through them and they do a great job.”

Georgia Tech coach Damon Stoudamire said the Cal duo reminds him of his playing days at Arizona.

“I recruited Justin. He does a lot of good things for them. He can play with (the ball), he can play without it,” Stoudamire said. “The best thing about him is he unleashes Ames. He does the dirty work. I know what that looks like. When I was at Arizona, I played with Khalid Reeves. I allowed him to be him.

"I think Justin is that type of player and he sets the table not only for their team, but he sets the table for Ames and allows him to play free.”

Pippen also is playing free after a frustrating freshman season at Ann Arbor, where he averaged fewer than 7 minutes and just 1.6 points per outing. He never got on the floor for any of the Wolverines. three NCAA tournament games.

“It was terrible, to be completely honest,” Pippen said. "You have no rhythm offensively. You kind of go into a hole where you’re wondering, `Am I really able to play at this level? Do they trust me? What is it?’ “

He entered the transfer portal and found himself recruited by Madsen for the second time. Cal’s coach made a home visit when Pippen was in high school and their rapport paid off for the Bears.

“He believed in me,” Pippen said. "He told me I would be able to play through mistakes and get the experience I needed. I trusted him on that and they trusted me. They put the ball in my hands, they told me I was going to be the point guard. And it’s worked out ever since.”

Justin Pippen goes for a layup vs. Florida State | Melina Myers-Imagn Images

Madsen is enthusiastic about all the ways Pippen contributes to the Bears’ success. He talks about his ability to control the ball with his dribble, his court vision, his conditioning and his willingness to shoulder responsibility.

“You’ll see him out on the court directing traffic: `You go over here . . . you’re in the wrong spot.’ That leadership is something that Justin brings,”Madsen said. “Justin is someone who can have the tough conversation with teammates in the locker room.

“Justin is doing all of those things and his game is unfolding right before our eyes and he can still do more things out there.”

Scottie Pippen, of course, has been an influence throughout Pippen’s basketball journey. Justin and his two older brothers — including Scotty Jr., who is now in his fourth NBA season — played 2-and-2 with Dad in the backyard.

The six-time NBA champion challenged his kids during their sessions.

“He was very cool. Back then, I felt like his body wasn’t as beat up and we’d play in the backyard all the time,” Justin said. “He would always make me cry. I grew up in a very competitive household.”

But Justin has no complaints about his father’s approach to mentoring him. “I feel like my Dad had no choice but to push, just to kind of (show) what it was going to be like for us.”

Even now, with the six-time NBA champion attending most of Cal’s weekend games, father and son talk or text before and afterward. “He’s my biggest critic,” Justin said. “It feels great coming from him. He’s an NBA legend so him giving me confidence is great.”

Justin Pippen now owns that confidence as he and the Bears strive toward a possible long-awaited NCAA bid.

“That hasn’t been done here in a minute,” Pippen said. “Not only just get in there, but win a couple games, win a lot of games. I feel like as soon as you get to the tournament anything can happen.”

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